


The World Has Turned and Left Me Here

by jendavis



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Bodyswap, M/M, Pre-Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-11-07
Updated: 2010-11-07
Packaged: 2017-10-13 02:56:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,442
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/132050
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jendavis/pseuds/jendavis
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ronon is John. John is Ronon. Then they aren't.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The World Has Turned and Left Me Here

Ronon's back ached mildly underneath the recently healed scar, but other than that, he felt fine. His reflection in the mirror was surprisingly unclear.

John made a note to mention it to Beckett. As soon as he got himself back into his own goddamned body.  
\---

Apart from the basic strangeness- seeing everything from a few inches too high and getting used to aches in different places than he was used to, oh yeah, and looking over at Ronon and seeing himself instead, there really wasn't any reason to stay in the infirmary at all.

After three weeks on the team, Ronon still wasn't that great at following orders, but he was getting a lot better at following leads. Between the two of them, they were able to talk their way out of the infirmary in record time.

John spent the usual half-hour browbeating McKay into figuring out how to make the tech do something it wasn't supposed to do. _Wraith didn't even need to wipe out the Ancients. Their own technology probably did it for them. Pegasus Darwinism._

"If this body-switching-type-thing is going to become a regular occurrence, we should probably get busy writing the protocols to handle it properly," was all Lorne had to say on the matter, but he was quick to wipe the smirk off his face. It was about then that John discovered the benefits to be had having Ronon's scowl at his disposal.

The intimidation, however, was probably hampered somewhat by Ronon's goddamned clumsy yeti-assed feet as he stumbled out into the hallway.  
\---

"What's up?" Ronon answered the radio with Sheppard's voice, cringing a little at the sound of it. It didn't sound right when he was hearing it from inside his own head.

"Where are you?"

"My room," Ronon growled, having decided that shorter sentences would be better, for now.

"Wanna meet me in the gym? Figure it can't hurt to learn how to drive this thing."

"See you there."

By the time he arrived, he could already feel the twinge in his knee. "Your knee always this bad?"

"Pretty much, yeah. But you'll get used to it. What about your eyes?"

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know. How the hell do you _read_?"

"Dunno," he said, realizing, for the first time, the lack of strain it took to see Sheppard's face. "You'll get used to it."

"Doubt it," Sheppard said, pulling himself up to his full height. "But that's what aspirin's for. Ready to go?"

Ronon paused, straightening his spine as he considered the new difference in height. "Yeah."

Sheppard was generally a very quick fighter- probably had to be, but it was strange trying to get used to it. Ronon had to pull his punches a little more, make sure not to overreach.

The only thing that probably evenly matched them was the fact that, at the moment, they were both as clumsy as a couple of toddlers. But with Sheppard fighting the way he usually did, it was amazing that Ronon didn't find himself pinned to the mat more often than he was.

It would have been uncomfortable, threatening maybe, but it wasn't. Not really, and it didn't bear thinking upon. Ronon figured he just trusted his own face more than anyone else's, even when it was six inches from where it was supposed to be.  
\---

John wished he could stop playing with his new dreadlocks. It was embarrassing, walking around, acting like some teenage girl. Especially when Lorne came across him in the hallway, utterly failing to hide the fact that he'd noticed.

It didn't stop John from putting his hair into pigtails and taking a few pictures, though. _Just in case. They might come in handy sometime._  
\---

Ronon listened as Weir filled her in on what she'd missed during her weeklong absence. She covered his and Sheppard's predicament briefly, in between _we've upgraded the medical filing systems_ _and t_ _he interdepartmental meeting's been moved to Tuesday mornings instead of Mondays._

After four days, the news had long since spread throughout the city, so Dr. Heightmeyer wasn't the first person that stared at Ronon. She was, however, the first one to blush and look away when caught. It was an expression, he realized, that he'd seen before, just not when it was trained on him.

  
Sheppard, when asked about it during their run, just said "No idea what you're talking about. Never noticed," without breaking stride.

They reached the turnaround at the end of the pier, and Ronon pressed on. "If someone was looking at me like that, it would be kind of hard not to notice."

"Well, I didn't."

"You're not usually oblivious."

"It's kind of a blind spot with me. Look." Sheppard came to a full stop and lifted his hair off his neck. "You might as well know. I mean, at this point, I'm wearing your clothes and showering in your body. Compared to _that_ , I guess, it's not a big deal." He finally looked over at Ronon, his eyes cautious. "I'm more interested in men than I am in women. Mostly."

"Yeah?" Ronon frowned, considering. "Done anything about it lately?"

"Don't worry." Sheppard rolled his eyes, dropped his arms to cross them over his chest. "I figure any experimentation your body engages in should take place with you _in_ it."

"You could, if you wanted to." Ronon tried for offhand and wasn't sure he succeeded. He didn't know why he was making the offer. It just seemed the thing to do. Like something Sheppard would say, casual and noncommittal.

"Well. Ah." Sheppard looked confused, his defensive stance easing a little. "Thanks, I guess. But seriously, I'm fine. What about you? Have I been involved with any women since I've been gone?"

"No."

"Well, if you want to, no big deal. Nothing that my meatsuit's never handled before."

"Not planning on it," Ronon decided, since the thought hadn't crossed his mind before this conversation began.

"Okay." Sheppard nodded. "Well, before we head back, one more thing. You can't tell anyone what I just told you, and not just because that has to go down as the most awkward conversation I've ever had in my life."

"Figured as much. You ready to go?"

In answer, Sheppard took off again, taking full advantage of his borrowed body. Ronon didn't even bother trying to keep up.  
\---

John caught himself standing naked in the bathroom, staring in the mirror again. It wasn't something he'd ever really done, and he doubted Ronon was the vain type, either, but damn. He really wished Ronon hadn't said anything out there on the pier, because it was becoming all he could think about.

And he was starting to feel it, now, too. _Hell, John. Like you didn't know you liked what you saw from the end of day one. Like you don't know that this is the last thing he'd fucking need._

Slamming his eyes shut, he reached for the shower and turned it on. Cold.  
\---

 _Shouldn't have said anything_ was about as far as he'd made it, and he'd been stuck there for what seemed like ages. _This is insane. Let it go._

Ronon turned the shower on, staring distractedly, as was becoming habit, at the black band on his wrist. He hadn't asked if he was supposed to take it off or not, but guessed Sheppard would have said something about it if it was important. _Hell, he gave me permission to have sex in his body. Don't think he's going to give a damn._

But somehow, slipping the band off seemed to bare more than just the pale unmarred skin of Sheppard's wrist. Ronon was exposed, now, as naked as he was nude, and he wished the mirrors here would steam up the way they did on Sateda as he clambered into the shower. _Sooner you get it over with, the sooner you'll move on._

He'd already grown used to how quickly the water soaked through to his scalp and the feeling of it coursing down over his neck. Keeping his eyes closed, he concentrated on the heat on his skin and took himself in hand.

He thought the release would help him focus, but it didn't. Stepping out of the shower after he came down, he wasn't sure if it was feeling the sensations through Sheppard's body, or the feeling of Sheppard's body under his hands that had sent him over the edge.

 _Fuck_.  
\---

Given the way the past week had gone, waking up in Ronon's room shouldn't have been so disorientating, but he'd managed to shake himself loose of it by the time he passed Ronon in the hallway.

Standing barefoot, one hand holding up the leather pants around his waist, he couldn't really find it in him to laugh how uncomfortably small his own clothes looked on Ronon's body.

"Good to see you. You know. When you're not me."

"Sheppard," was all Ronon said in response, squinting a little as he grinned.

"You mind calling me John? I think at this point, we can do away with all the formality."

"Sure. John."

"Thanks. I. Ah. We should go get changed, then probably head down to see Carson.  
\---

John's first official act, now that they were no longer on stand-down, was to inform Beckett of Ronon's need for an eye exam, but he didn't press to make sure it happened right then.  It didn't seem fair, somehow, to be the only one cut loose.  

Ronon came with him to check in with Weir, and then breakfast. After that, it didn't seem strange to have him loitering in the office while he started in on the paperwork that had piled up. It was only an hour before their meeting, anyway.  
\---

"Ronon, John, I am glad to see you are both recovered," Teyla said, easing herself down into her chair.

"Yeah, I hear you're getting glasses?" McKay was having a hard time not laughing, but at least he was trying. Which meant John had no cause to dump the rest of his coffee over Rodney's head, and no need to analyze the motivations behind the impulse. Besides. Ronon's eye roll was rebuttal enough.

It wasn't until Weir came in that he realized, belatedly, that he hadn't even seen Ronon's response to know it was there.  
\---

John was, as usual, ready for their run by the time Ronon rang the chime. Even if his eyes weren't fully open yet, his mouth had evidently woken up. "Don't know about you, but I need to get used to this again. You up for two miles today?"

"Sure," he said, and led the way out to the pier. His warm-ups might have been a little more slow-going than usual, but he had to keep watch and make sure John wasn't putting any more strain on his knee than he needed.  
\---

It was three days before anyone mentioned it.

"And where is Ronon? I am quite surprise to find you not in his presence," Teyla observed, setting her tray down for lunch.

"What? We're not joined at the hip or anything. Anyway, he's in the infirmary, he should be finishing with his eye exam any minute now," John checked his watch again, and found that it looked familiar enough that he'd probably checked it sometime within the past three minutes. "At least, I figure, as long as it's just basic farsightedness. Otherwise, who knows," John cut himself off with a shake of his head. _Christ, you're gonna wind up like McKay if you don't watch i_ t.

"Interesting."

"What?"

"Your concern regarding the results of someone else's medical exam. _Especially_ for so minor a condition."

"Hey, his body was my home for a while. Kinda want to see it sticking around. The better he sees, the longer he will."

"Of course," Teyla tilted her head, almost enough that John missed the twitch of her eyebrow.

" _What_?"

"It is nothing," Teyla placed her hand on his arm reassuringly. "Merely an observation that you two have grown closer as of late. I am glad you have become friends. It only strengthens the team, and I believe, both of you as well."

John laughed, but then he wasn't so sure, because at first, Ronon was late for lunch, and then he never showed.  
\---

Ronon slowed as he entered the mess, spotting John and Teyla sitting out near the windows. They were talking intently, and he could hear John's nervous laughter from here. Found himself wishing he couldn't, and turned back into the hallway.

His test results weren't that interesting, and he could eat later.  
\---

"Where you at? I haven't seen you all day," John said when Ronon answered his radio.

"Been around. Infirmary, mess, gym, botany lab, library. You?"

"The usual. Just checking in to see if you want to grab dinner here in a bit."

"Sure. Meet you in the mess. Give me ten minutes?"

"Sounds good," John said, keeping his tone even and signing off, because _I'm staring in the mirror right now and wish I was looking at your face instead_ was too stupid and embarrassing to think, let alone say.  
\---

Dinner was stupid and awkward, and wasn't made any better by Zelenka's decision to inform everyone within earshot that the Ancients had intended the device to allow lovers to reach a more complete understanding of their partners.  
\---

Ronon was getting tired of pretending that nothing needed to be said, mainly because he wasn't sure. It didn't leave them much else to talk about, and he got the idea that that was the reason John had wanted to come out here.

"It's weird," John said, apropos of nothing as he pulled another can of beer from the ring.

Ronon followed suit. "What is?"

"That I know your body better than I know your mind."

"There's not a whole lot else to know," Ronon replied, because he was pretty sure that _I touched you and felt all of it_ wasn't the right thing to say at a moment like this.

"I got that. Fuck, I don't know. It's like. There's this _thing_ ," John gestured, some of the beer sloshing over his hand, "and we're supposed to get past it, and I'm usually pretty decent at strategizing, but…"

"Same here," Ronon grimaced, "I don't have any good ideas."

John laughed, quietly enough that Ronon knew, with startling clarity, that he was the only person in the galaxy who heard it. He had to lean in a little, brushing his shoulder against John's to hear him ask, "Got any bad ones?"

It was the closest they'd been since being inside one another, and it was starting to feel like a solution.


End file.
